Ex-Bloomberg TV employee to file discrimination suit

Michael Musto of The Village Voice reports that Bloomberg Media’s International Managing Director of Television Brian Martinez plans to file a discrimination lawsuit against the company for losing his job earlier this year.

Musto reports, “Martinez’s suit alleges that he was the victim of anti-gay discrimination and also perceived disability discrimination.

“After a domestic violence incident with his then-partner, Martinez says his employer deemed him mentally incapacitated to continue working, though he says a doctor found him perfectly capable.

“Bloomberg Media’s official comment is:

“‘Throughout his 10-plus years at Bloomberg, Brian was open about his sexual orientation and was promoted multiple times. We have always been a leader in providing benefits to domestic partners, and we covered the health benefits of Brian’s partners including an international relocation of his partner from Tokyo to London.

“‘Any hint that his termination was related to sexual orientation is ludicrous to anyone who knows Brian or knows this company.'”

Chris Roush is the Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.